and establish a Gallic viceroy in the palace of St. James." That controversy, I presume, is now closed, by the events of the years 1812, 1813, 1814, and 1815; and by the present residence of the Imperial and Royal Exile, whom those sagacious statesmen so long worshipped as the god of their idolatry. In the Advertisement to the "Hints on the National Bankruptcy of Britain," it was said, "the consideration of the domestic policy, the foreign relations, the manners and habits, the laws, religion, morals, literature, and science of this very interesting and unparalleled country, whose institutions are almost entirely unknown to the people of Europe, and not sufficiently understood, at least in their remoter consequences, by the general body of our own citizens, I shall take up, as soon as I have leisure and opportunity to arrange the great mass of materials, facts, documents, and state-papers, respecting these United States, with which I am furnished by the careful and diligent collection of more than three years, aided by the abundant and liberal communications of some American gentlemen, who have distinguished themselves as statesmen of the highest order, by the zeal, fidelity, industry, and talent, with which they have discharged the most arduous political duties, both in their own country and in the courts of the most powerful European kingdoms." More than eight years have now elapsed, since it was then proposed to publish a "View of the Resources of the United States." Those eight years have added very considerably to the bulk and interest of the collection then formed; and the following pages, selected and digested from the voluminous masses of materials relating to our federative Republic, are offered to the reader as an effort to redeem the pledge, given so long since as October, 1809. It is not intended, in the present work, to give a statistical view of the United States. This has been done already, with so much ability and accuracy, by the Honourable Mr. Pitkin, a member of Congress from Connecticut, that the political economist has only to resort to his book for ample instruction on the commerce, agriculture, manufactures, public debt, revenues, and expenditures of the United States. To Mr. Pitkin's "Statistical View," the following pages are much indebted; and I beg leave to embrace this opportunity of presenting to that gentleman my grateful acknowledgments for his very kind and liberal offer to furnishi me with his own collection of documents respecting the United States; a collection unrivalled in extent and value, and containing, in more than a hundred printed volumes, besides innumerable manuscripts, all the necessary information respecting North America, from her earliest settlement; and, more especially, respecting these United States, from their first establishment to the present hour. The object proposed in the following work, is merely to give a brief outline of the physical, intellectual, and moral character, capacity, and resources of the United States; with an entire determination to steer clear of all undue bias for or against either of the great contending political parties, which divide, agitate, and govern this ever-widening Republic. As I have never received, nor sought any favour or benefit from any one of the numerous parties which have had their day of triumph and defeat, in the quick succession, and rapid alternations which so peculiarly characterize all the movements of men and things, under our popular institutions, I may, perhaps, be permitted to say, in relation to those parties, whether dominant or defeated, "Tros, Tyriusque mihi nullo discrimine agetur." After a few introductory remarks on the importance of a right acquaintance with the resources and character of the United States, and the grievous misrepresentation of them by European writers, the first chapter exhibits the territorial aspect, population, agriculture, and navigable capacities of the United States; the second, their commerce, home and foreign; the third, their manufactures; the fourth, their finances; the fifth, their government, policy, and laws; the sixth, their literature, arts, and science; the seventh, their religion, morals, habits, manners, and character. The work is concluded by an eye-glance at the present condition of Europe, particularly of Spain, France, England, and Russia, and the probable consequences of the present European coalition to these United States. New-York, January 14th, 1818. JOHN BRISTED. TABLE OF CONTENTS. DEDICATION.-Advertisement-general conviction of the United States, in 1809, that France would conquer England, v.— that conviction opposed by the author then, ibid.-intention, at that time, to give a view of the United States, vi.-Mr. Pitkin's Statistics, Capacity and character of the United States not understood in Eu- rope, 1-their importance, 2-Atlantic and Western, 3-misrepre- sented by travellers, 4-as Imlay, Parkinson, Ashe, Jansen, &c. 5-Brissot's theory of the United States, 6-Gilbert's theory, 8— TERRITORY, AGRICULTURE, POPULATION, AND NAVIGABLE Territorial aspect of the United States, 11-population of the United States, and other countries, 15-rapid growth of the United States, 17-of New-York, Baltimore, Kentucky, New-Orleans, 18 -foreign emigrants, 20-salubrity of the United States, 21-popu- lation of the United States; how raised and distributed, 22-Vir- ginia population, 23-agriculture of the United States, 24-naviga- ble capacities of the United States, 25-canals may connect the whole union, ibid.-their importance, 26-power of Congress to make them, 27-the Alleghany mountains and their rivers, 28- communications between the Atlantic rivers, the St. Lawrence, and the Lakes, 32-the New-York canal, 33-its importance, 34-ter- ritorial capacities of the United States, 35-works thereon, 36. COMMERCE OF THE UNITED STATES. Anti-commercial theory, 37-its folly and mischief, 38-aggregate their commercial distress, 40-peculiar advantages of the United States, 40-their exports 41-imports, 42-home and foreign trade. 43-tonnage, 44-tonnage of Britain, France, and other nations, 45 -United States coasting trade, and navy, ibid.-emancipation of Spanish America, 46-its importance to Britain; to the United States, 47-junction of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, 48-nego- tiations with Britain and President Adams for emancipating Spanish America, 49-necessity of exertion on the part of Britain, 50. MANUFACTURES OF THE UNITED STATES. Connexion between agriculture and manufactures, 52-folly of forcing manufactures, 53-their condition in the United States, 55 -efforts to establish their monopoly, 56-its evil, 57-mechanical skill of the United States, 58-their chief manufactures; amount, quality, and value, 59-in the different States, 61-and in peculiar places, as Patterson, Philadelphia, 62-Wilmington, Pittsburg, 63 -steamboats, 65-Fulton, ibid. FINANCES OF THE UNITED STATES. Necessity of internal taxation, 67—United States taxes establish- ed, destroyed, 68-mistaken economy of the United States, 69- standing army of the United States; of Britain, 70-importance of taxation, and moneyed institutions, 71-national debt of the United States, 72-loans of last war, 73-sinking fund, 74-revenue of the United States, 75-customs, duties, &c. 76-internal taxes, 81 -their apportionment, 82-United States property in land, slaves, &c. 83-its rapid increase, 85-public lands, 86-finances of the United States for 1817, 88-aggregate of the United States capi- tal, income, and expenditure, 89-do. of Britain; her deficit, 90 -do. of France, and other powers, 94-purchase of Florida, 95- contrast between the energy of the United States and supineness of Britain, 96-importance of Cuba to Britain, 97-feverish state of Europe, ibid.-preponderance of Russia, ibid.-Holy League, 98- combination of Europe and the United States against Britain, 98. |